Curcumin Extends Lifespan, Improves Healthspan, and Modulates the Expression of Age-Associated Aging Genes in Drosophila melanogaster

ABSTRACT: Curcumin, a yellow pigment extracted from the rhizome of the plant Curcuma longa (turmeric) has been widely used as a spice and herbal medicine in Asia. It has been suggested to have many biological activities such as anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, chemopreventive, and anti-neurodegenerative properties. We evaluated the impact of curcumin on lifespan, fecundity, feeding rate, oxidative stress, locomotion and gene expression in two different wild type Drosophila melanogaster strains, Canton-S and Ives, under two different experimental conditions. We report that curcumin extended the lifespan of two different strains of Drosophila and was accompanied by protection against oxidative stress, improvement in locomotion and chemopreventive effects. Curcumin also modulated the expression of several aging related genes (genes with age-dependent changes in gene expression) such as mth, thor, InR, and JNK. In order to evaluate the impact of curcumin and aging on gene expression, we first determined which genes were affected by aging alone in Canton S flies. Age-related changes in gene expression were defined as changes in expression levels that occurred between 3 and 40 days of age (median lifespan). Among the 18,880 probe sets in the Affymetrix GeneChip® Drosophila Genome 2.0 Array, 1,383 genes (Data on file, 7.3%, P < 0.05) had statistically significant changes in expression levels during this time frame. We next determined the effect of curcumin on gene expression levels in young and aged Canton S flies. Gene expression were defined as changes in expression levels that occurred between 3 and 40 days of aged flies with or without curcumin-feeding.

ORGANISM(S): Drosophila melanogaster

SUBMITTER: Kyu-Sun Lee 

PROVIDER: E-GEOD-21182 | biostudies-arrayexpress |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-arrayexpress